<b>Chapter </b><b>399 </b>
In Peacewell Pharmacy, a middle–aged man in a long robe was carefully weighing herbs on a brass scale, the crisp clicks of an old abacus filing the air.
Standing across from him was a chubby, good natured–looking young man–Maverick’s eldest grandson, Niks Todd
Niks had the look of someone you’d never suspect of anything–round checks, soft build, harmless smile,
He asked, “You really aren’ting back to Todd School?”
“Not nning to,” came the t reply.
Niks propped his face on his hands, sighing, “Don’t be mad at Culver anymore–he found the National Doctor’s Seal, you know?”
Axton’s hands paused over the abacus. He looked up, expression unchanged. “He found it?”
Niks nodded. “Yeah. He did.”
Axton Sanchez frowned, his gaze sharpening “And the medical books?”
“No books. Just the seal.”
Axton’s eyes narrowed<b>. </b><b>“</b>You checked it? is the seal real?”
Niks shed a practiced, eager smile. “My dad checked it himself. It’s real. We really want you toe back.”
Aston just dropped his eyes, his yellowed hands flicking the abacus beads once more. After a long silence, he said quietly, “I stopped being his student a long time ago. You should go.”
No matter how Niks tried to persuade him, Axton remained stone–faced and silent. Finally, Niks gave up. “Alright, I’m leaving then. The handover ceremony for Culver is in mid May. You have toe.”
Axton didn’t respond. Niks slipped out in silence.
But the moment he turned away, the innocent smile vanished from his face.
Once back in the car, he dialed his father. “Dad, Axton doesn’t seenyto know about Culver getting the seal<b>.</b><b>” </b>
A long pause. Then, “Keep digging. Those three medical books can’t go missing”
After about ten days of recovery, Aria’s shoulder was finally well enough for some basic movement.
Labor Day <b>was </bing, five <b>days </b>off for the whole school.
Out for <b>the </b>seniors at First High, even a holiday meant nothing: SATs were next month, and no one dared ck off.
Valerie had texted Aria ahead of time, so she arrived early and headed to his office first.
She knocked, heard a e in,” and walked <b>inside </b>
Valerie saw her and immediately set down her work, greeting her warmly, “Aria, you’re here.”
Laying her name,
Vrie couldn’t help but remember the first time they met back then, she’d been known as Nathan’s sister. Now she was Lily’s.
(09:52 Fri, <b>20 </b>Jun D
<b>Chapter </b>309
Aria gave her a polite smile. “Hi, Ms. Gibbs,“
Valerie got up and offered her a chair, then pulled another up for herself across from her,
“I knew you’d being to pick up Lily, so I wanted to chat with you for a hi
his tone turning serious
“Lily’s been working hard. She’s never dropped out of the top three in all the city’s mock exams. She’s got a real shot at taking the top spot this year.
“Buttely, I’ve noticed she’s been getting close to a freshman girl. That student’s a bit… <b>unusual</b>. She was enrolled mid–year, and before this, she’d never had a formal education,
“Her tanly donated a library to the school–otherwise, we never would’ve epted her. When she first came, she wore a mask all the time. Some curious kid yanked it off one day and saw her face was scared…”
Valerie paused, letting out a heavy sigh, her concern obvious. “Fest High has a zero–tolerance policy for bullying. The student who pulled her mask got written up on the spot.
“The other kids tried to make friends, but she turned everyone down–except Lily. Somehow, she reallykes Lily. She visits the senior ssrooms all the time, eats and studies with Lily, even gets tutoring from her.
“Honestly, I should have talked to you sooner, but I wanted to see how things yed out before jumping to conclusions. Something about this feels off <b>even </b>asked Lily if they knew each other before–she swears they didn’t.“–
Aria listened carefully, not interrupting. She agreed it was odd. “Thank you for telling me, Valerie. I’ll look into it.”
Valerie trusted Aria. She nodded. “I’m not worried about Lily’s grades–she’s always focused. But the SAT is to close. Thest thing she needs is some unpredictable drama right now.”
A family wealthy enough to donate a whole library<b>, </b>but never sent their kid to school until high school? A girl who refuses to talk to anyone but Lily, yet insists on Lily spending all her time helping her with basic coursework?
if they were truly friends, she wouldn’t be distracting Lily at the most important moment.
With that kind of money, she could’ve hired a tutor.
Aria stood and bowed slightly, her gratitude sincere. “Thank you, My, Gibbs.”
Homeroom teachers were always so busy, it was hard for them to care about their students the way Valerie did. She even noticed things like who was making friends with whom
tely overlooked.
That was something Aria hadpletely ov
Valerie stopped her with a helpless smile. “Just doing my job.”
“Ms. Gibbs, can ask who’s listed as Rachel’s guardian?”
She answered without hesitation, “Her guardian is Ondo”
Aria’s expression shifted. “<b>Thank </b>you. Don’t worry, I’ll handle this”
<b>She </b>had a pretty good idea who this girl was now the one who lived upstairs.
They chatted a bit longer, until the bell rang
Valerio told her, “That girl will probablye looking for Lilly. You can <b>wait </b>outside her ssroom and maybe catch her.”
Aria nodded. “Thank you. I’ll head over now!
She left, making her way to the senior crash course ssroom.
Just as she reached the door, she spotted a girl running down the hallway.
The girl froze as soon as she saw Aria,
Ada took a few s
forward. The girl immediately backed away<b>, </b>fear and suspicion in her eyes.
She was scared of Aria.”
Aria stopped where she was, her gazes steady.
“Rachel,”
Ondo strode up, nting himself at Rachel’s side, giving Aria a pointed re before lowering his voice <b>to </b>Rachel, “I couldn’t find you in ss. Your ssmates said you came to ss One.”
ss One was Lily’s ss.
He asked, “Are you really that <b>close </b>with Lily from ss One?”